Thursday, April 15, 2010

Read Product Labels

More importantly though 'Understanding' product labels, because I don't believe reading them is always the problem. The only bright side to this otherwise shady fad-diet craze that seems to be so popular in this country is that people are indeed becoming more aware of food labels, the problem is by "aware" I mean aware of their existence but not of any real understanding.

It's kind of like the engine compartment of that car you may be driving... you're aware that under the hood is an engine, but there is no real understanding of the basics.

I am constantly amazed of peoples' in ability to locate even the common food ingredient "no nos" like sugar or understand the importance of location for those like salt.

Take Glaceau's Vitamin Water... if you look at the ingredients you will notice the first three listed read as follows; "Vapor Distilled, Deionized, and/or Reverse Osmosis Water, Crystalline Fructose, Cane Sugar". What bothers me is that the marketing departments of these company's think that the average person is so unaware, so caught up in this fad-diet "lose weight quick" with little or no effort craze, and so easily distracted by such simple words like "vitamin" that we wouldn't notice that 2 of the first 3 ingredients are sugar; "Crystalline Fructose, Cane Sugar"! But what bothers me even more is that the average person is exactly that; unaware, so caught up in this fad-diet "lose weight quick" with little or no effort craze, and so easily distracted by such simple words like "vitamin" that they take the bait hook line and sinker.

Just to clear things up overly processed refined simple sugars are never good, so if you see them listed twice within the first three ingredients be wary; especially if the product is marketed as a healthy drink.

Another big thing to look for is the location of salt in the ingredients, and if you're eating process food (organic or no) than there is no doubt salt is in the ingredients and the majority of the time it's in the form of a simple salt (sodium minus any healthy trace minerals). It is important to choose the products that list it near or at the bottom of the list, it can be the difference of 100+ milligrams of sodium.

I want nothing more than to believe that people are not as gullible and easily misguided as these food manufactures would like us to believe; prove me right!

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About Me

I started this journey an unsuspected naive pawn in our countries deadly game of food manufacturing and industrial farming. As I began to see the light, I began to question everything about our food industry. What am I eating? Where did it come from? What are the health and environmental side effects? And what can I do to change? I began following a more natural holistic path for all my medical needs and in the process I discovered something profound… The natural way is the only way!

Health Fact of the Month

Sugar = Chronic Disease

I think that is a math equation anyone can solve...

Diet's high in processed foods (sugar) and grains (glucose to the body) wreek havoc on your health! They cause blood sugar spikes and interfere with the body's natural insulin response. Not to mention the inflammation they cause within the gut. Research shows that most all of today's chronic autoimmune diseases have inflammation at their core.

And before you replace those addictive refined sugars and High Fructose corn syrup with artificial sweeteners, you should know that they often lead to higher weight gain and have been shown to be very toxic due to formaldehyde conversion during digestion.

Healthy Advise

Don't use a microwave!

I dislike microwaves for two reasons, first is that they so perfectly represent today's unhealthy food-lazy society dependent upon premade prepackaged precooked nutrient deficient overly processed food. The second reason is due to the unhealthy side effects this device has on your food and ultimately your health. These devices work by "cooking" from the inside out using microwave radiation to violently excite the molecules of the food. I can assure you that this process will mutate the food at a molecular level; what comes out is not what goes in! And if you do your research you will find that this microwaved food most certainly has negative unhealthy effects on those who eat it.

Eat Smart! Buy fresh organic ingredients and use your kitchen for what it was designed... cooking!

Informative Books

*Wild Health by Cindy Engel*The Vegeterian Myth by Lierre Keith*Encyclopedia of Nutritional Supplements*Encyclopedia of Healing Foods*The Healing Power of Foods*The Most Effective Natural Cures on Earth*Healing With Whole Foods*Never Be Sick Again*The Omnivore's Dilemma*Natural Cures They don't want you to know about

Grain Free Products

Try these healthy tasty grain free products!

Coconut Flour- In place of wheat based flours try substituting with coconut flour in all your favorite recopies. You can find coconut flour at most health food stores and some super markets, but I've found that Dr. Mercola's website has the best price for this healthy organic non-gmo grain-free flour! It's high in fiber, a good source of protein, and Gluten Free! Tip- Use about half the amount as you would wheat flour and twice the amount of eggs; increase number of eggs until you get the consistency you desire.

Coconut Oil- Coconut oil is an extremely healthy alternative to those unhealthy vegetable and grain based oils you are accustom to; like canola, corn, soy... Coconut oil is a great source of healthy saturated fat and will not oxidize when used for frying.

Coconut vinegar- Rice wine vinegar gets a lot of attention amongst today's health conscious, but what about coconut? It turns out this raw (unheated) coconut vinegar made from the sap of the coconut palm is high in nutrients and has a low glycemic index... it's a win-win!

Paleo Bread- Going gluten fee and greatly reducing grain consumption is a huge part of a healthy diet. And what better way to do this than by replacing that unhealthy bread in your fridge or cabinet with this Grain Free, Soy Free, Gluten Free, Starch Free alternative!